Action Alert: AAAE Urges Congress to Fund More TSA and CBP Staff in Final FY23 Budget Assistance from Airports Requested
October 26, 2022
AAAE President and CEO Todd Hauptli has sent letters to House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders urging them to provide additional staffing resources to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the final fiscal year 2023 (FY23) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill. We are expecting these leaders, along with their staff, to begin negotiating on these items after the mid-term elections are over.
AAAE continues to argue that with air travel returning to and exceeding pre-pandemic levels at many airports and with wait times becoming more of a concern, additional staffing resources for both agencies are essential to continue to process domestic and international travelers and their baggage effectively and efficiently. Specifically, AAAE is asking Congress to:
• Fund the 2,540 additional Transportation Security Officers the administration requested for FY23 to meet TSA staffing needs (absent these resources, TSA has indicated that the agency will pursue staffing reductions at 197 airports).
• Retain funding for TSA to continue to staff airport exit lanes.
• Fund at least 250 new CBP officers to address ongoing and documented staffing shortages at airports.
• Provide additional funding to cover CBP user fee shortfalls as well as the flexibility to utilize resources to hire additional CBP officers if fee collections exceed current estimates.
Separately, AAAE joined 49 other aviation, travel, and trade associations yesterday on a broad industry letter to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees requesting that they fund more CBP officers at the nation's air and seaports in the final FY23 DHS spending bill. This letter cited the continual redeployment of officers from airports and seaports to the southwest border as one reason more officers are needed.
Request: As we discussed on the Monday Federal Affairs call, it would be helpful if you could amplify our message about the need for more TSA and CBP staff at airports. Please reach out to your members of Congress, particularly those on the Appropriations Committees, in support of additional TSA and CBP staffing and provide specific examples if possible. Links to members of Congress can be found at:
· https://www.house.gov/representatives
· https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm
Thank you in advance for your assistance.
AAAE President and CEO Todd Hauptli has sent letters to House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders urging them to provide additional staffing resources to the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) in the final fiscal year 2023 (FY23) Department of Homeland Security (DHS) appropriations bill. We are expecting these leaders, along with their staff, to begin negotiating on these items after the mid-term elections are over.
AAAE continues to argue that with air travel returning to and exceeding pre-pandemic levels at many airports and with wait times becoming more of a concern, additional staffing resources for both agencies are essential to continue to process domestic and international travelers and their baggage effectively and efficiently. Specifically, AAAE is asking Congress to:
• Fund the 2,540 additional Transportation Security Officers the administration requested for FY23 to meet TSA staffing needs (absent these resources, TSA has indicated that the agency will pursue staffing reductions at 197 airports).
• Retain funding for TSA to continue to staff airport exit lanes.
• Fund at least 250 new CBP officers to address ongoing and documented staffing shortages at airports.
• Provide additional funding to cover CBP user fee shortfalls as well as the flexibility to utilize resources to hire additional CBP officers if fee collections exceed current estimates.
Separately, AAAE joined 49 other aviation, travel, and trade associations yesterday on a broad industry letter to the House and Senate Appropriations Committees requesting that they fund more CBP officers at the nation's air and seaports in the final FY23 DHS spending bill. This letter cited the continual redeployment of officers from airports and seaports to the southwest border as one reason more officers are needed.
Request: As we discussed on the Monday Federal Affairs call, it would be helpful if you could amplify our message about the need for more TSA and CBP staff at airports. Please reach out to your members of Congress, particularly those on the Appropriations Committees, in support of additional TSA and CBP staffing and provide specific examples if possible. Links to members of Congress can be found at:
· https://www.house.gov/representatives
· https://www.senate.gov/senators/senators-contact.htm
Thank you in advance for your assistance.
